INTRODUCTION

Greece is a unique country with a unique culture. It is unlike any other culture found in Europe. Greek dance is a social phenomenon. It is an expression of not only art, but for many Greeks, its role is to maintain the Greek national identity. Even though a great deal of folk dance is found throughout Europe, none can boast of such passion as Greek dance. Folk dance is very much thriving and a part of daily life in Greece. Folk dance is maintained not only because it is learned in dance companies, but rather at every possible occasion, whether it be a wedding, festival, dance tavern, coffee house and various other celebrations Greeks would sprint into dance. It is the memory of the territorial homeland that keeps these dances alive. Those that have immigrated outside of Greece continue to keep that memory alive be sending their children to various Greek affiliated organizations. Living outside of the ancestral homeland, a feeling of longing persists in the need to be able to identify with the territory that was left behind. It becomes imperative to nourish the memory and transfer the traditions of the land to offspring. Hence, dance becomes a perfect vehicle in the expression and preservation of time-honored practices. At one point of another, children will naturally come in contact with learning a Greek dance. Dance will persist in being an essential part to the preservation of Greek national identity. It is a way of life. This is precisely where the paradox starts. All the while, it is impressive the extent of the vitality and upkeep of Greek dance outside of Greece, the reality is that the authentic memory of Greek folk dance is dying along with its sole vehicles: The old men and women in the villages back in Greece. Dance is an activity that is all around us. Sadly it can be argued, that Greeks treat folkloric dance causally and give it little attention. As according to the book ìWorld of Greek Danceî, those who dance regularly as members of groups or in taverns, have the tendency to regard the dances as memorized routines. While it is an expression of their culture, this is precisely where the interest stops. They have no lure to learn the rich history, origin or nuances of expression that are found in Greek folkloric dance. Paradosi means tradition, and as mentioned by one of the teachers in from the group, ìeven though many Canadian and American children learn Greek dance as a form of expression of their Greek culture, the instructors that teach the dances are not necessarily concerned with the genuineness of the steps, but rather their goal is to put on a grand spectacle that generally has no ties to the original meaning of the dance. The dance therefore, becomes a series of commercially memorized steps The multiculturalism of Toronto provides a perfect springboard to a group like Paradosi where they are free to examine their roots and challenge the status quo. Our goal in this project is to present Paradosi as an ëexcellent exampleí of a group that represents the vision of four teachers who seek out not only to teach the steps of dance, but fully engage their students in learning all aspects of the art of Greek folkloric dance. It is a group that is in constant searching of new ways of uplifting and bringing back the authenticity to Greek folkloric dance. These dances are unequivocally tied to the old territorial lands of Greece, which arouse the memory of Greece, bringing feelings of identity, nationalism, and what it truly means to be Greek.